The pigeons found cultural evolution
Experts from Oxford University have shown that pigeons are capable of collective information sharing, which increases their productivity.
The ability to collectively process information and make joint decisions is important for many social animals. It is known that “collective intelligence” have, for example, bees, primates and people, but so far, his research has focused on single forms. Less clear is how different species accumulate and transmit individual experience of the group and, in particular, through the generations. This process, called “cumulative cultural evolution” (described in the framework of the theory of dual inheritance), associated with the necessity of solving tasks, such as navigation in the given conditions. Interaction collective intelligence and cultural evolution are also studied.To address this gap, the British ornithologists conducted an experiment with 60 blue rock pigeons (Columba livia).
The animals were divided into ten groups, after which one bird from each group was 12 times out of the campsite Greenhill farm to the place of breeding of the University of Oxford. After the formation of the sustainable routes specimens were carried out 12 flights in a pair of pigeons, which exact direction was unknown. Thus, consistently replacing one bird in the pair, the authors tested the cultural evolution of the five “generations” in all ten groups. As a control were 30 doves, which were released in the framework of single or paired flights without mixing with other birds. Routes, animals were studied with the help of GPS navigators. The analysis showed that the efficiency of flight (the difference between the distance to the object — 8.6 kilometers, and the length of the flight) in the experimental groups increased over the 12 sessions.
In the control groups the figure was unstable: the pigeons are not included in the process of transmission of culture, created and repeated their routes until the completion of the tests. The mixture of “experienced” birds and the “newbie” first degrades the performance, but dramatically improved it with subsequent flights. According to the comparison of the final flight, and the change of pigeons had reduced the distance to breeding site is 1.2 kilometres from isolated individuals at a distance decreased by 0.05 kilometer (a single flight) or increased by 0.04 kilometer (paired).It is noteworthy that the specificity of the routes that paved the experimental pairs remained up to three “generations”. From about the fourth “generation” flights on average run in a straight line and converge at common points.
According to scientists, the obtained data indicate the presence in pigeons of cumulative cultural evolution. This, in particular, confirmed the higher efficiency of mixed pairs compared to pairs of control groups: in the absence of information from other individuals of the latter is not only not reduced, but even increased the length of the route. On the collective intelligence of these birds points conjectural ability to consider information that enhance the performance and discard the rest.
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